Phil Jackson, legendary coach of the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers, told an ESPN Chicago radio station that Miami Heat forward LeBron James has the potential to be better than NBA legend Michael Jordan, as long as he stays healthy for the rest of his career.

SportsRadioInterviews.com has Jackson's comparative assessment between the NBA's current best and the Greatest Of All Time.

“He's got all the physical attributes. I think we all question the prepping that went into LeBron. His defense was shaky when he was a younger player and finding his way through that direction. He is a player that can play four positions. Except for perhaps the center spot, which he hasn't given a shot at yet, he can play those other four positions quite well. This is unique; Michael could play three and was very good at all three of those. But as a power player that LeBron can become, I think he has an opportunity to explore and advance some of the status that he has already gained.

"Winning six championships is an elusive thing out there, and they haven't won two yet. But he's kinda got the smell of it and even the Olympic experience this summer, he was the granted leader of that team and was the critical player when they needed something to happen in the final games. I think he's there. I think he's at that position. He's got good things ahead of him, and a lot of it depends upon if he's gonna be healthy for the remainder of his career.

“I have a hard time judging that best player, but I do think that Michael had more moves in the post and he had more of a, perhaps, shooting touch with his back to the basket and all these kind of things that were part of his game. LeBron has this train out of control when he gets the ball in transition that he can go coast to coast without anyone getting in his way. And if they do, he's going to over run them. And he's got the power with the body, and he's developed a left hand that's extremely good.

"There's a lot of things that you are seeing in the development of this player that leads towards that, but the ideal and the whole reason behind this is what kind of championships are you gonna get from a player like this? Can he match what Michael has done?”

Jackson's assessment is right in line with a recent breakdown by Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, who said James is "bigger, stronger, faster" than Jordan, according to USA Today. The comparisons really ramped up in August, when Heat guard Dwyane Wade said James was "on that level" with Jordan.

James is 27 and coming on like a freight train. As noted when Wade first made his comments, 27 was a critical age for Jordan, as it represented the high-water mark of personal production for his career. He went on to win ring after ring after ring, but his personal accumulations started to slack at that point, receding from his impossible to maintain early-career standard and briefly disappearing when he tried his hand at minor league baseball and then hung it up for a second time before launching an unfortunate comeback with the Washington Wizards that everyone has agreed to forget.

The main thrust of Jackson's argument, then, is spot on, even if he's granting James this massive stage a bit too early. James has the capability to accumulate accomplishments that could eventually far exceed Jordan's standards. If he doesn't get bored with basketball, doesn't take time off, continues to put up the same absurd stat lines that he has managed throughout his career and stays healthy, his final career numbers could blow Jordan's out of the water.

That won't be nearly enough for him to win the final "Jordan vs. James" argument, though. That will be all about rings. Jordan exists at the nexus between personal accomplishments and team glory. Going 6-0 in the Finals is the modern NBA's most pristine mark. James has already lost two Finals, and he has alienated a solid portion of the basketball intelligentsia along the way, especially for the forgettable summer of 2010. Even if James continues on a Wilt Chamberlain-esque course of statistical domination, he's facing an uphill battle for public opinion. Is six rings definitely enough if he has two Finals losses already to his name? Would 7-2 in the Finals be enough to topple the Jordan mythology and the now untouchable 6-0?

Lakers guard Kobe Bryant has faced the same dilemma, and he's an excellent case study here. Bryant, too, has lost on the NBA's biggest stage, where Jordan did not. Should the new-look Lakers take the 2013 championship, giving Bryant his sixth title, will anyone outside of Southern California believe that achievement pushes Bryant past Jordan? Of course not. The nit-picking -- Bryant had way more help; he wasn't perfect in the Finals; he wasn't the No. 1 guy during the early championship years, etc. -- would rule the day.

That's the obstacle for James. To top a legend, you need to destroy it handily. We all know that history will grant Jordan every benefit of the doubt and every 50/50 call.

I can see ppl's perceptions shifting to Lebron being the greatest ever at some point but I can't see it he would need to have a flawless highly skilled game like Jordan with no weakness at all mentally and skillfully for him to surpass Jordan in my eyes.

The two biggest knocks up to this point of LBJs career is his postgame and whether he has that killer instinct. his postgame is [expletive]ing ugly but extremely efficient, and his play this past post-season dispels any talk of LBJ not being clutch.

Hollywood said it best, he needs to stay this dominant way up until he retires (or for at least 6 championships, if he can get there) to be considered the GOAT. But it's gonna be tough, i really see D.Wade lasting another 2 years tops at his usual level of performance, and there are teams (*cough* LAKERS *cough*) talented enough to slow down their small-ball brand of basketball.

On a side note, I don't even like this comparison. i've always thought LBJ plays like a more physically brutal Magic with less "magic."

The two biggest knocks up to this point of LBJs career is his postgame and whether he has that killer instinct. his postgame is [expletive]ing ugly but extremely efficient, and his play this past post-season dispels any talk of LBJ not being clutch.

Hollywood said it best, he needs to stay this dominant way up until he retires (or for at least 6 championships, if he can get there) to be considered the GOAT. But it's gonna be tough, i really see D.Wade lasting another 2 years tops at his usual level of performance, and there are teams (*cough* LAKERS *cough*) talented enough to slow down their small-ball brand of basketball.

On a side note, I don't even like this comparison. i've always thought LBJ plays like a more physically brutal Magic with less "magic."

What made Kobe, Kareem, Michael special is their greatness and longevity

They weren't just great they were grea for incredible amounts of time

That's what Lebron has to prove now. He proved he can win, he's already proven he can produce great numbers now he needs to prove he can do those things for a long time

This plus he has to become even more of a complete player like Jordan and Kobe no weakness' at all and prove that mentally he has the killer instinct and clutchness for the long term to be the best ever or considered up there.

On the other hand Lebron James only use his speed and his body to beat his opponent and that's the best way to win and he's doing it in the right way.

Um...no....Kobe still is.

See when you're young and athletic and that's what you use a majority of the time to win you flourish till that first step gets a little slower.

It's kind of like boxers.

Roy Jones Jr and Bernard Hopkins

Roy relied on his speed quickness and athleticism and when he messed up his body with coming down in weight and his reflexes and athleticism slowed a bit he was never the same fighter by his early to mid 30s.

Hopkins relied more on fundamentals and using everything he could when his body started to slow a bit and lasted well into his 40s as a competitive fighter.

Kobe was the smartest and most athletic when it came on the court in his prime which is what made him so great. He didn't just beat people cause he was stronger or bigger, he beat them because he was smarter.

Kobe still beats them because he's smarter.

If LeBron keeps playing the game the way you mention by the time his first step isn't so fast anymore he's gonna start to struggle because he can't bulldoze opposition anymore and beat them on athleticism and talent alone.

Let me use an example... this time in basketball

Shaq and Kobe

Shaq: Could bulldoze people with his talent speed and natural ability, was and like a candle flickers violently right before it goes out. so did Shaq. But when he started getting a little older that speed and that athleticism wasn't there..his game fell off and he never recovered strictly because of his lack of work ethic and intelligence to add other avenues to his game because he just used "i'm bigger and stronger" to beat people.

Kobe: COULD be more athletic get past people and jump over them, but he took the time pefecting his game and adding different elements every single time, adding things he could do later on in his career that he still uses effectively. That's why he's able to compete at such a high level even into his mid 30s, same goes for Steve Nash.

if LeBron only relies on his natural ability and strength like you're suggesting he'll be done by the time he's 30-31 in terms of being a dominant force. His way works right now, but he'd better start investing into abilities and things he can rely on into his 30s. Because if he doesn't hell fall off too way before he should.

"Bryant had come to rage against the idea that Howard's clownish disposition could overtake the locker room, the Lakers' culture, and had warned Howard that he would never, ever let it happen."

See when you're young and athletic and that's what you use a majority of the time to win you flourish till that first step gets a little slower.

It's kind of like boxers.

Roy Jones Jr and Bernard Hopkins

Roy relied on his speed quickness and athleticism and when he messed up his body with coming down in weight and his reflexes and athleticism slowed a bit he was never the same fighter by his early to mid 30s.

Hopkins relied more on fundamentals and using everything he could when his body started to slow a bit and lasted well into his 40s as a competitive fighter.

Kobe was the smartest and most athletic when it came on the court in his prime which is what made him so great. He didn't just beat people cause he was stronger or bigger, he beat them because he was smarter.

Kobe still beats them because he's smarter.

If LeBron keeps playing the game the way you mention by the time his first step isn't so fast anymore he's gonna start to struggle because he can't bulldoze opposition anymore and beat them on athleticism and talent alone.

Let me use an example... this time in basketball

Shaq and Kobe

Shaq: Could bulldoze people with his talent speed and natural ability, was and like a candle flickers violently right before it goes out. so did Shaq. But when he started getting a little older that speed and that athleticism wasn't there..his game fell off and he never recovered strictly because of his lack of work ethic and intelligence to add other avenues to his game because he just used "i'm bigger and stronger" to beat people.

Kobe: COULD be more athletic get past people and jump over them, but he took the time pefecting his game and adding different elements every single time, adding things he could do later on in his career that he still uses effectively. That's why he's able to compete at such a high level even into his mid 30s, same goes for Steve Nash.

if LeBron only relies on his natural ability and strength like you're suggesting he'll be done by the time he's 30-31 in terms of being a dominant force. His way works right now, but he'd better start investing into abilities and things he can rely on into his 30s. Because if he doesn't hell fall off too way before he should.

I understand what you've been trying to say and you were right about that

but compare Lebron James to the other player who has a big size like him and athletic like him

They can't score like Lebron James

Btw Kobe Bryant is not Athletic Player like lebron james cause Kobe Bryant is an All Around Player